Friday, June 19, 2009

I was in Robbie's room last night to tuck him in bed and say prayers, when I looked up and saw this:

and this:

and this:

"Robbie! What did you do to your walls?!"

"Nothing."

"Don't tell me nothing, you colored on your walls."

"Not me. It was a ghost."

"It was a ghost my foot. Why did you do that?"

"To make it beautiful."

And then my mind turned to The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch (if you haven't read it, definitely put in on your summer reading list. It's both short and inspiring.) As a teenager, Pausch lobbied his parents to let him paint his bedroom and draw all sorts of crazy things on the walls. And his folks said yes.

The difference here is that Robbie is not a teenager and he went with the "ask forgiveness, not permission" philosophy.

So I said, "Robbie, the next time you want to make something beautiful either do it on paper or ask Mommy or Daddy if it's ok first."

But I have to admit that there is something endearing about his dinosaur art. And I don't want to be guilty of quashing his inner artist, which has shown itself before. So, I'm leaving it right where he put it.